Clear water a fry cry in lakes of Delhi

Hindustan Times

15-05-2025

At Roshanara Bagh, Delhi's oldest Mughal-era park, history isn't just neglected — it's rotting in plain sight. Once the leisure haunt of princesses and poets, the 17th-century garden has reeked of neglect for decades. But last year, it was infused with a new lease of life when under a ₹11 crore project funded by the central government, the lake was desilted, landscaped, and beautified.
But less than a year after being declared restored, the lake at its heart is once again under siege — half of it choked with thick algal bloom. A pungent stench rises from its water. Even the ducks now struggle to navigate the dense green scum. The sweet promise of restoration that arrived decades late has already soured.
It wasn't meant to be this way. When the lake was rejuvenated, the government announced plans for boating and a lakeside café, calling it a model for revival. But even before the project's second phase could begin, signs of decay have returned with alarming speed. Aerators and fountains whir every evening at 6pm, but they do little to oxygenate the filth in the water.
'The problem is the poor quality of treated water being used to feed the lake,' said a horticulture official at the site, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'We're doing what we can, but the algae just keeps growing.'
Roshanara is not an isolated case.
Across Delhi, several high-profile lake revival projects are wilting under the weight of poor planning, untreated sewage, and misuse of treated water. The previous government had launched the ambitious 'City of Lakes' mission to restore more than 200 waterbodies. Now, as the new administration reiterates its promise to revive Delhi's ponds and lakes, a ground check by HT of five major lakes reveals that most are once again deteriorating.
Water activist Diwan Singh, who has led campaigns like the Yamuna Satyagraha, believes lake rejuvenation must begin with natural sources such as rainwater or linking waterbodies with stormwater drains.
'We've done this in Dwarka. Contamination can still happen in these systems, but at least there's a chance of long-term sustainability,' he said. 'Treated water should only be the last resort—and even then, only if its BOD [Biochemical Oxygen Demand] is under 3 and it's of bathing quality.'
Treated but poorly monitored wastewater, he warned, is dangerous for lakes that serve as groundwater recharge zones. 'Contaminated water in these depressions can cause irreversible damage.'
Bhalswa Lake: Suffocating in waste
Once shaped like a horseshoe and nearly comparable in size to the 121-acre Nainital Lake, Bhalswa was formed from a meandering loop left behind by the Yamuna. Today, its western side is shrinking fast — encroached by landfill, settlements, and the sprawling Bhalswa Dairy colony.
During a recent spot check, HT found that while garbage dumping on the eastern edge near the golf course has been reduced, the lake's western flank is a toxic mess. Dairy waste, plastic, and household sewage continue to be dumped directly into the lake, turning it into a foul, semi-solid mass.
Rajender Sahu, a local resident, pointed to choked and punctured drains around the dairy colony. 'The drain meant to prevent this filth from entering the lake is clogged with plastic and cattle waste,' he said.
When contacted, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) did not respond to queries on the present state of the lake.
Cut off from the Yamuna by an embankment built in 1964, Bhalswa Lake has since lost its primary natural water source. 'Being a natural lake, it must be revived using river water. Lakes in forest and ridge areas should rely on local catchment run-off,' Diwan Singh said.
Sanjay Lake: A rejuvenation gone wrong
Sanjay Lake, a 54-acre artificial waterbody built in the 1970s by backflows from the Yamuna and Hindon, lies in Mayur Vihar, surrounded by greenery and earmarked for tourism. DDA owns the lake, but its revival was handed over to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).
Under DJB's 24x7 water supply project, treated water from the Kondli Sewage Treatment Plant was pumped into the lake to help recharge groundwater, with plans to extract and purify the water for household use. But the reality is far grimmer.
Last week, HT found that only a fraction of the lakebed has water. Thick algal bloom covers the surface, and a pungent froth can be seen where water flows in from the treatment plant—an indicator of contamination by high levels of nitrates and phosphates.
Mounds of garbage dot the periphery, particularly near Trilokpuri. Despite the lake's supposed potential to produce 15-20 MGD (million gallons per day) of potable water, the site's current condition casts doubt on the feasibility of any safe extraction.
DDA did not comment on the state of the lake.
Bhim Singh Rawat, a Yamuna activist, and member of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP), said that the 'use of treated water for rejuvenation of lakes needs to be backed by rigorously monitored treatment process with open source data to check that the water is not going back to poor quality.'
Kitchener Lake: Park jewel to marshland
Located inside Jheel Park near Dhaula Kuan, the 66-acre Kitchener Lake was once a scenic centrepiece — so prominent that it featured in seismic impact reports during the earthquake that shook the city in February.
Now, it's a marsh choked with algae, garbage, and plastic. Stinking waste dots the periphery. Anil Sood, a Vasant Kunj resident who remembers the lake in its pristine 1970s state, has filed a petition with the National Green Tribunal seeking its revival.
'This used to be clear blue water. Now it's completely green with algae. There's not a single patch where clean water is visible,' Sood said. He blames sewage inflow for the lake's rapid eutrophication.
DDA did not comment on HT's queries about the present condition of the waterbody.
SANDRP's Rawat warned that areas not connected to sewage lines end up dumping wastewater in these low-lying waterbodies. Polluted groundwater can cause irreversible damage to groundwater aquifers, he said.
On the use of treated water for revival, he said the method has been successful in cities like Bengaluru, but added that it should be combined with open data source of treatment plants and quality monitoring mechanism. 'The untreated sewage in the city is not only polluting the river but also prove a greater hazard for the last remaining waterbodies of the city,' he said.
Welcome Jheel: A lake, but only in name
Welcome Jheel Park in east Delhi is perhaps the most tragic example of failed revival.
The lake's restoration was planned back in 2012 by the then East MCD, with ₹22 crore proposed from the Trans-Yamuna Area Development Board. In the first phase, ₹7 crore was allocated for a sewage treatment plant.
Construction began and the partially built park was even inaugurated in February 2022 by MP Manoj Tiwari. Amphitheatres, administrative blocks, and a landscaped footpath followed. But the lake itself never materialized.
Today, visitors to the 62-acre site find a barren depression filled with weeds, burnt grass, and rubble. The lakebed is dry. The ramp built to lead to a shimmering waterbody now points to a desolate plain.
Locals say the Municipal Corporation has all but abandoned the site. Plans for a Bollywood-themed recreational park were quietly shelved.
A seven-acre waterbody was to be filled using phytorid technology—an eco-friendly method that uses specific plants to clean wastewater through natural wetland processes. 'The plant can treat up to 30 lakh litres per day,' an official said. But when asked why the waterbody itself is missing, a municipal official shrugged, blaming the engineering department.
From grand announcements and crores in public funding to broken promises and green scum, the story of Delhi's lakes is one of ambition undermined by indifference. If the city is to truly become a 'City of Lakes,' officials, ecologists, and local communities must step up together—not just to build lakes, but to keep them alive.